US President Barack Obama posing with employees during Halloween at Gregg's Restaurant in Providence, Rhode Island.US President Barack Obama posing with employees during Halloween at Gregg's Restaurant in Providence, Rhode Island.

After dressing as a pregnant nun last year, US Army member Sheldon Gayle thought he might want a different type of costume for his battalion’s annual Halloween costume run and something a bit sexier for the club scene.

“I am trying to find something unique for the race,” the 29-year-old said yesterday, as he eyed a superhero Wolverine costume in a New York City store.

Gayle’s quest for the perfect costume is emblematic of the growing number of American adults for whom dressing up for Halloween is de rigueur. Some are willing to spend hundreds or even thousands of dollars on get-ups worthy of increasingly elaborately planned parties.

Americans shelled out an estimated $7.4 billion (€5.9 billion) for Halloween this year, according to the National Retail Federation, with $2.8 billion ((€1.9 billion) going towards costumes for children, adults and pets.

While children were trick or treating across the country on Thursday, an estimated 75 million adults were also celebrating the ghoulish holiday yesterday.

This year was expected to get pretty insane

“Halloween really has been geared towards adults lately,” said Kodi Hadrick, 26, the manager of Abracadabra in Manhattan, which rents and sells costumes, wigs, shoes, props and accessories for the ghoulish holiday.

“This year was expected to get pretty insane,” she added.

Unlike previous years when costumes inspired by the film American Psycho or the serial killer TV show Dexter set trends, there was no one outstanding costume this year.

But Elsa from the hit Disney film Frozen and Maleficent, the Angelina Jolie character in the movie of the same name, were among the favourites of adults and children.

“Usually we can tell beforehand. In years past there was a definite theme but this year it is all over the board,” said John Kanazawa, who works in Abracadabra’s adult costume rental section, where racks were filled with outfits ranging from Black Beard pirates, Indians and showgirls to Colonial men and women and ballerinas.

Although people chuckled when they saw the store’s Ebola costume, a bright yellow plastic jumpsuit with goggles and face mask, Kanazawa said there were few takers.

Instead, customers tended to favour elaborate costumes that rent from $100 (€80) to $450 (€359) for three days, or a month during the Halloween season. “There is no traditional costume nowadays,” said Hadrick. “It is literally what social media and the press build up. A lot of people want to go all out, especially in New York.”

Photographer Mark Lakin was contemplating a gray pirate captain’s outfit with a large, embroidered jacket and cuffs as his friend emerged from the dressing room as an Indian warrior, a popular feathered outfit made by the in-house store designers.

Lakin celebrates Halloween every year and tries to find just the right costume for the numerous parties he will be attending.

“It’s a week-long festival,” he said while adjusting the massive, triangular pirate hat festooned with plumes. “If you are going to do it, you have to do it right.”

Prices for packaged adult costumes at Abracadabra averaged about $60 (€48) for the likes of Dracula, Roaring 20s flappers, Wonder Woman and witches to much more for special one-off designs.

The store’s costume maker was wiring a custom-made Tron costume that lights up, based on the sci-fi film.

“It can go up to a couple of thousand [dollars] if you want a high-end costume,” said Hadrick, adding that an outfit can also be put together by the store for about $200 (€159). (Reuters)

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